Rock Trolls Turn 19
1) Antaeus attacks Wonder Man with CCE, 9 vs 16. Attack roll is 4,3 (7) for a hit. Impervious roll is 6 for no damage.
2) Brach moves to J7.
3) Danni moves to H15.

**********************

Hera's Temple

'Oh no,' Tigra thought to herself, still trying to remain silent and hidden as she progressed through the temple. 'What will happen if Hera is defeated? She's the wife of Zeus, right?'

Suddenly, Hawkeye appeared nearby, having leapt down from a dais surrounding the central worship area. He and Mockingbird were not quite as quiet as Tigra, but they were almost as fast. "Look up there," Hawkeye whispered, as he tilted his head and directed his gaze toward a faint glow at one end of the temple. "Maybe we can skip this Greek Jerry Springer show and get to the sun god before anyone sees us..."

Mockingbird had leapt straight toward the faint glow and communicated with her teammates quietly through the comm system they wore: "You guys have to get up here quickly. I think this is our ticket out of here."


- Hawkeye leaps to L6.
- Mockingbird leaps to I2.


Shades of Hades
A) ha026 Pluto 125 (8/10) I10 @
1) or025 Shadow Thief 38 (6/6) M16
2) or025 Shadow Thief 38 (6/6) A13
3) or026 Shadow Thief 47 (6/6) D6
4) or026 Shadow Thief 47 (6/6) P5
5) or027 Shadow Thief 65 (7/7) D15
6) or027 Shadow Thief 65 (7/7) J4

Grief-Stricken Hera
B) [3] or217 Queen Hippolyta 119 (1/9) H11

Avengers
4) [ ] Hawkeye (AVM) 65 (4/5) L6 @
6) [ ] V Tigra 54 M6
8) [4] V Mockingbird 34 + Vault 3 I2 @

LOs: C4, P9, G15
Winged Sandals (X-Kryptonite): H3

Special Rules:
- Shadows: Figures may not draw lines of fire to other figures more than 6 squares away.
-Hera is considered friendly to the Avengers and is part of Mikeinmke's force, except that she cannot leave this map.
-Shadows cannot take actions to move from their current locations. If at the start of his turn Pluto can draw a line of fire to any Avengers, this rule is nullified for the rest of the game.
-Avengers characters with the flight ability can exit the map from row-1 of the map, to move to the Solar Shrine of Apollo.

http://www.ianparmenter.com/hcutils2...1&u4=x592y-187

WCAvengers turn 19a

Beasts of Myth - Hephaestus' Forge

Wonder Man had been unable to break away from the humongous rock troll. The creature had held Simon fast and it had been able to shrug off Simon's powerful attack, as well. Now, the stone-hard fist of the troll was being wound up for a heavy blow.

Fortunately, Wonder Man recovered his wits and was able to brace himself against the attack. The gisnt rock troll bellowed in anger - and some apparent pain - as Wonder Man's ionically charged impervious body made it possible for Simon to fight off the deleterious effects of the attack.



- Wonder Man and Iron Man/Thorbuster/Rhodey clear.

The Avengers:
1) [10] U Thorbuster (HaThor) 140 (9/9) E7
2) [11] V Wonder Man (Av) 117 (7/8) G13
3) [6] E Scarlet Witch (Ult) 49 (0/5) KOed!
5) [1] E Ant-Man 66 (-2/6) KOed!
7) [9] V Moon Knight 34 (1/6) C5
B) [6] R Wasp 24 (0/4) KOed!

Mountain Trolls:
1) "Periphetes" (cm073 Ulik) (2/8) G12
2) ha004 Rock Troll "Adonias" ""KO""
3) ha004 Rock Troll "Brach" (4/7) J7 @
4) "Antaeus" (cm074 Ulik) (5/8) H13 @
5) ha004 Rock Troll "Cartosus" (4/7) I15
6) ha004 Rock Troll "Danni" (5/7) H15 @

HOs: B14, O12
LOs: K14

Special Rules: The orange lines indicate Lava terrain. At the end of each player's turn, deal 1 unavoidable damage to each figure occupying Lava terrain.

http://www.ianparmenter.com/hcutils2...2y-286&u8=x1y0



Hera's Temple

( to me, it very much sounds like: if Hawkeye doesn't have Energy Shield/Deflection to 'trade out' for Combat Reflexes, then his Trait is moot... checking the Rules forum confirms this... )

Hawkeye could hardly believe what was happening to him. He suddenly noticed that he was being assaulted by something... something that looked and felt like a moving shadow; and this something made Clint feel a shiver of foreboding.

He desired little more than to fly away and leave the creeping fear of these shades behind. Suddenly, Hawkeye perceived that he was, indeed, in the air and flying away! Once aloft, Clint noted that the glow was emanating from a pair of sandals that had wings on them, like the typical images of Hermes' or Mercury's footwear. He floated away from the beings of darkness and over the head of Pluto, whose black eyes squinted in anger at this mortal taking flight. Hawkeye flew higher and higher, and around him everything became brighter and brighter...



- Hawkeye now has Willpower showing/he possesses Willpower, so he'll attempt to break away > roll: 4 (whew!). Hawkeye moves to H1 and is OFF the map.
( i had been predicating my approach here on the assumption that the Flight granted by the X-Kryptonite would mean that Hawkeye could also use Carry, but now (only now, after weeks of prepartion!) I see that these abilities are exclusive... aaaeck! )
- Tigra moves to G5.


Shades of Hades
A) ha026 Pluto 125 (7/10) I6@@
1) or025 Shadow Thief 38 (6/6) M16
2) or025 Shadow Thief 38 (6/6) A13
3) or026 Shadow Thief 47 (6/6) K7@
4) or026 Shadow Thief 47 (6/6) P5
5) or027 Shadow Thief 65 (7/7) D15@
6) or027 Shadow Thief 65 (7/7) J4@


Grief-Stricken Hera
B) [3] or217 Queen Hippolyta 119 KOed

Avengers
4) [ ] Hawkeye (AVM) 65 (2/5) @@ { OFF }
6) [ ] V Tigra 54 G5 @
8) [4] V Mockingbird 34 + Vault 3 I2

LOs: C4, P9, G15
Winged Sandals (X-Kryptonite): H3

Special Rules:
- Shadows: Figures may not draw lines of fire to other figures more than 6 squares away.
-Hera is considered friendly to the Avengers and is part of Mikeinmke's force, except that she cannot leave this map.
-Shadows cannot take actions to move from their current locations. If at the start of his turn Pluto can draw a line of fire to any Avengers, this rule is nullified for the rest of the game.
-Avengers characters with the flight ability can exit the map from row-1 of the map, to move to the Solar Shrine of Apollo.

http://www.ianparmenter.com/hcutils2...9&u5=x637y-246

Pluto and friends clear.

Actually, if I could pause the game for a moment: entering Apollo's Solarium trigger an end-of-game effect. I will be writing it up soon, and Mike will be given an option to end the game before any further turns occur.

The light grew so blinding that Hawkeye reflexively shielded his eyes, or risk being blinded permanently. Yet the light soon dimmed, and when he looked again Hawkeye found himself removed from Hera's shadowy temple and in someplace altogether different.

All around him were stars. He realized, dimly, that there was a floor under his feet. But the platforms that he stood on were only about a foot in diameter. When he lifted his leg the floor under his foot disappeared, and reappeared where ever he put it down again. All around him in every direction was the most brilliant panorama of stars his eagle-sharp eyes could behold, sights more stunning than anything captured by the Hubble. Only after a minute of gaping, during which Mockingbird came floating up to his side, did Hawkeye focus on an dimly glowing, orange skinned Greek man slumped over in a marble throne a couple dozen yards from them.

"Apollo!" Hawkeye called out, only rousing the god to a slight tilt of his head. His once golden skin was dimmed to a dull shine, and scabbed over in places with black sunspots. The two Avengers rushed to the side of his throne, seeking to help him if they could. But Apollo waved them aside.

"I am not wounded, mortals. Merely exhausted. The burden of keeping the sun's flame burning has fallen more heavily upon my shoulders this past week."

"Yeah, about that..." Clint began.

"Apollo, my, uhh, m'lord," Bobbi tried, not quite sure how to properly address a god. "The god Ra has been killed, by the same evil force which murdered Zeus. We've been sent by the Egyptian moon-god Konshu for your help. We were told you had an artifact in your possession that could revive Ra."

"Hnng. Of course," Apollo grunted, pulling forth a rod ringed with two coiled serpents, the symbol of all modern medicine on Earth. Apollo was too tired to even bother questioning the Avengers' credentials. The moment Bobbi took the staff from Apollo she felt all her wounds and strains from the difficult journey up Mount Olympus disappear.

"Should we just go?" Bobbi asked Clint, and made her partner gasp by touching him with the healing powers of the rod.

[Mockingbird and Hawkeye are both restored to full health]

"Wait," he told her, his fighting spirit renewed along with his physical health. "How can we leave Olympus here in the hands of Ares? You saw the chaos his coup has caused here."

"You would oppose the god of war, archer?" Apollo wheezed. "Such valor. When you fall in battle you will have a welcome place here in my hall of heroes. But for now, take this, and perhaps you'll stand a sliver of a chance." Apollo brought forth his own quiver and plucked forth a golden arrow to give to him. It felt impossibly light and firm in Clint's fingers, and buzzed with a faint electric charge.

[Hawkeye gains the feat: "Solar Arrow" (0 points): +1 +1:d-starburst: Hawkeye can make a ranged attack targeting a single opposing character up to 12 squares away and clear line of fire which cannot be evaded. Damage from this attack is penetrating to characters with the "Diety" or "Cosmic" keyword. Characters adjacent to a hit target are each given an action token. Discard this event (permanently) after use.]

"Only a sliver," came a grim growling voice from over Clint's shoulder. Both Avengers spun to face an armored giant of a man whom could only be Ares. He held a bloodied sword in one hand, and had a great battleaxe slung over his shoulder in the other. "And what then? Suppose your arrow finds my eye," Ares taunted, narrowing one simmering pupil at Hawkeye, "and you drive me off the highest peak of Olympus. What becomes of Olympus next? Zeus is stone. Hera is dragged off to Hades. Apollo sits limp and useless upon his dais."

"I, Lord Mars, am the only protection that the souls of Olympus have to turn to. Topple me and you will see this blessed realm besieged as Asgard or set aflame as the Golden Kingdom. The forces of Hell are ready to devour this realm. My army will turn them back,"

"That and the backroom deal he cut with his uncle Pluto," Mockingbird muttered under her breath.

"You guys! Hey!" came Tigra's voice, as she came ascending up to the side of Hawkeye and Mockingbird. "I saw Pluto and his shadows carry Hera off through a portal that opened in the floor - oh!" Tigra promptly shut up when she realized she was intruding on the stare-down with Ares. Her voice dropped to a whisper, and asked "do we have to fight him now?"

"Yes, Avengers, do you wish to test yourselves against me?" grinned Ares, flexing his bronzed arms and hefting each weapon, ready for battle.

[If MikeinMKE chooses to, the Avengers can take the rod and leave Olympus now, ending the scenario and earning a bonus 5 TXP for leaving Ares in control. Clint and Rhodey can take their new weapons with them back to Earth.

If you choose to fight Ares instead, you may do so. The match will begin with Hawkeye, Tigra and Mockingbird at full health; the heroes on the Hephaestus match will enter the game as backup (at their current health levels) after 2d6 rounds of battle, if the fight is still going. If the Avengers win this match Ares is deposed but they do not earn a bonus 10 XP, having failed to rescue Athena in one of the side maps. If Iron Man is KO'ed he is stripped of the Hephaestus armor, and if Hawkeye is KO'ed without using the Solar Arrow he will lose it.]

Ares waits confidently, eager to see what path the heroes will take.

written by MikeinMKE

Hawkeye looked back and forth between Ares and Mockingbird, between the looming, powerful presence of the god of war and the beautiful countenance of his crime-fighting wife. Ares’ challenging gaze bore down on Hawkeye, and the archer could feel the tension in the rarefied air.

“What would you do, mortal,” Ares prodded with a booming, deep voice, “risk your life and those of your friends by meddling in the affairs of the gods?” Ares was eager for battle, as always, and he leaned forward and looked down at Hawkeye’s face. At the same time, Ares’ immeasurable practice in ageless conflicts meant that he was very aware of Hawkeye’s hands, his weight distribution, and gaze.

Hawkeye glanced up and around at the limitless heavens. He felt small. ‘I’m not a leader,’ flashed the thought through Hawkeye’s mind. He felt a wave of emotion for Bobbi and felt the slight weight of his bow in his hand. There was certainly no guarantee that he, Mockingbird, and Tigra would stand even a slim chance of defeating Ares. The team’s powerhouses, Wonder Man, Thor, Iron Man, and Sersi, were nowhere to be seen – if they were even still alive after the Avengers had split up during their mission through these realms of myth. ‘What would it accomplish if we won, anyway?’ he asked himself silently.

Apollo groaned quietly. The Greek sun god had surrendered the Rod of Asclepius to the Avengers without a struggle – practically without question. Its magical powers of healing had already worked on Hawkeye. Mockingbird held it in her hands and watched Hawkeye closely for his next move. She had had extensive tactical training, but sometimes – she knew – Hawkeye’s gut feeling was a better guide for ethical decision-making than cold analysis.

“Keep your throne,” Hawkeye blurted, “and I hope you choke on it.” Bobbi grinned slightly at Hawkeye’s clumsy mixed metaphor, then smiled more broadly with pride for her husband’s unerring moral compass.

“You might be in charge of Olympus for now,” Mockingbird added, “but what would you have without a sun?” She pointed at the war god. Her gesture was appallingly challenging.

Ares grinned imperiously and with mixed satisfaction. The impetuous gesture of the small female entertained the god of war. As pleased as he was that his path to the throne appeared unhindered, he also missed the opportunity for more battle.

“Pluto is going to give you a run for your money,” Tigra said, “if he ever figures out what to do with Hera.” Tigra made a point of sticking close to her teammates and kept an eye on Ares, as well, not trusting him to stay pacific.

“Ha, ha, ha!” boomed Ares’ laughter. “I would relish battle with that pale troglodyte! He would stand little chance against me.” The muscular god hefted his blood-stained weapon in anticipation.

Hawkeye knew that his decision had upset a millennium-old arrangement on Olympus, but he also remained convinced that Olympus was not the only important thing in the universe. The sun seemed to be important to more than just Olympus, to more than just Apollo, and now the Avengers had the Rod of Asclepius. That was what they had come for, and they had paid a price for it. If Moon Knight was right, then the Egyptian sun god Ra still needed the Avengers’ help.

‘What happens now?’ Hawkeye thought to himself. ‘If this were like the movies, Athena would magically appear and tell us what to do….’

WCA Annual epilogue

Ares spoke no more. He pulled himself to his full height and gazed imperiously down at the three mortal heroes. Slowly, he extended his left arm and pointed. It was clear that he meant for Hawkeye, Mockingbird, and Tigra to take their leave.

Mockingbird had the Rod of Asclepius in one hand and she took Hawkeye’s hand in the other. Somehow, the Avengers’ feet found support amidst the Olympian heavens, and the heroes descended carefully and without a rush, leaving Ares and Apollo behind.

The stars above their head faded from view, obscured by some sort of clouds or mist. They passed through an area that resembled Hera’s temple, but it appeared empty. Before Hawkeye, Mockingbird, and Tigra regained any decent range of vision, they heard sounds of conflict. Soon, they saw Wonder Man, Moon Knight, and – an armored figure that could only be Iron Man. Their teammates were engaged in a fight against a couple rock trolls.

The melee was quickly decided in the Avengers’ favor, and the heroes were able to tell each other an abbreviated version of their respective trials since they had split up in Artemis’ hunting grounds. Even though his face was covered, Moon Knight was clearly amazed that Hawkeye had reached Apollo and that the Avengers obtained the Rod of Asclepius.

Moon Knight reached out for the Rod, and Mockingbird surrendered it wordlessly. As soon as he touched it, Moon Knight felt his serious injuries disappear. He was again able to stand straight and regained his impressive bearing, which struck Tigra as incongruous in light of the damage Moon Knight’s costume betrayed.

Right away, a silvery glow surrounded Moon Knight. “You have done well,” a sonorous, silky voice resounded, although the Avengers could not see its source. It was tempting and powerful. Without warning, the world around the heroes shifted again, and the heroes could not trust their eyes.

When the environment appeared to stabilize, Iron Man, Wonder Man, Hawkeye, Mockingbird, Tigra, and Moon Knight could not help but perceive palm trees, a broad and slowly flowing river, and an edifice that looked like an Egyptian temple from a thick library book.

The Avengers had seen and experienced so much recently, yet they were as though rooted to the spot; except for Moon Knight. He strode purposefully toward the temple and vanished inside. The Avengers had successfully brought the Rod Of Asclepius to the aid of Ra, the Egyptian sun god. Soon, a radiant glow seemed to emanate from the temple entrance; a warm, orange light, and the silhouette of Moon Knight with his cape appeared, returning to his colleagues.

“We are done here,” Moon Knight said. He continued walking right past the other Avengers, and when they turned to look at him, they could perceive a now-familiar silvery-white halo around Moon Knight’s body. As if on cue, the Avengers followed, and left the Egyptian underworld.

****

Deep underground, in a secure room full of a vast array of advanced equipment whose existence was known only to a handful of people, Tony Stark exclaimed, “Finally!” There was nobody in the room to hear him, but he had been so frustrated by the limitations of his technology that the information he was now getting was a great relief. For days, there had been no perceptible data coming from the transponders in the Iron Man suit that Rhodey was wearing. It had been as though Rhodey – and his highly sophisticated suit of armor – had simply vanished.

The signal was coming clearly from New York, in fact, from the Avengers mansion, and it had seemed to reappear from nowhere. ‘How in the world?...’ Tony thought to himself. ‘It’s a good thing I keep tabs on this stuff. It would not do for just anybody to get their hands on my designs.’ As he looked more closely at the data, Tony noticed, however, that something was different, something was wrong. “Hmm,” Tony mused aloud, “what is that?” His eyes narrowed and looked more closely at the screen and the transmitted information coming in from the Iron Man suit.

****

It could be described as magic or perhaps as godly intervention. All of the Avengers had reappeared back at the Avengers mansion in New York. Although several of the team’s members were reluctant to admit it, many of them ascribed their good health – indeed, their very lives – to Khonshu’s intercession and aid.

“What… what happened?” wondered Wasp aloud. “Did we…?” She glanced from Hank to her other friends in the Avengers, all of whom seemed none the worse for wear.

Ant-Man did not respond directly to Jan but rather stepped to the window. The sky was not blood-red. The sun shone overhead through the city’s haze and a thin layer of clouds and it was apparently back to its healthy, yellow, hot self.

The assembled heroes drank in the sunlight streaming through the Avengers’ mansion’s tall windows. The all silently savored their accomplishments, the fruit of their demanding struggles, and hoped that the future would remain bright.

Nice! Love the ending

IAP and TAP calculations from this issue: ----->

from damage dealt:

[3] Hera/Queen Hipppolyta

[9] Iron Man > 2 IXPs, 1 IAP
[11] Wonder Man > 2 IXPs, 3 IAPs
[6] Scarlet Witch > 1 IXP, 2 IAPs
[ ] Hawkeye > 0 IXPs, 0 IAPs
[1] Ant-Man > 0 IXPs, 1 IAP
[ ] Tigra > 0 IXPs, 0 IAPs
[9] Moon Knight > 2 IXPs, 1 IAP
[4] Mockingbird > 1 IXP, 0 IAPs
[6] Sersi > 1 IXP, 2 IAPs
[2] Vision > 0 IXPs, 2 IAPs
[6] Wasp > 1 IXP, 2 IAPs
>>> 57 TAPs


from KOs: Minotaur/Ursa Major 102 points; Rock Trolls ‘Tau’ and ‘Acturus’ 45 + 45 points; Rock Troll ‘Adonias’ 45 ==> 237 points KOd / 4 = 59.25 TAPs

Adding the TAPs ==> 57 + 59 = 116 TAPs = 29 TXPs

Bonus: 5 TXPs for leaving Ares in control of Olympus for the time bring (per editor’s instructions post #110).

old totals (from WCAvengers #36)
V Iron Man (Secret Invasion) 188 (7 IXPs, 0 IAPs)
V Wonder Man (Mutant Mayhem)## 132 (42 IXPs, 0 IAPs)
V Hawkeye (Fantastic Forces)* 84 (15 IXPs, 0 IAPs)
V Scarlet Witch (Fantastic Forces)** 62 (15 IXPs, 3 IAPs)
R Giant Man (Hank Pym) (Avengers) 82 (20 IXPs, 2 IAPs)
V Tigra (Fantastic Forces)**** 54 (7 IXPs, 3 IAPs)
V Moon Knight (Avengers) 38 (14 IXPs, 0 IAPs)
V Mockingbird (Sinister)*** 34 (12 IXPs, 2 IAPs)
U Sersi (Critical Mass)# 76 (20 IXPs, 2 IAPs)
R Vision (Supernova) 65 (18 IXPs, 3 IAPs)
R Wasp (Infinity Challenge) 24 (5 IXPs, 2 IAPs)

Team: 232 TXPs, 0 TAPs

new totals:
V Iron Man (Secret Invasion) 188 (9 IXPs, 1 IAP)
V Wonder Man (Mutant Mayhem)## 132 (44 IXPs, 3 IAPs)
V Hawkeye (Fantastic Forces)* 84 (15 IXPs, 0 IAPs)
V Scarlet Witch (Fantastic Forces)** 62 (17 IXPs, 1 IAP)
R Giant Man (Hank Pym) (Avengers) 82 (20 IXPs, 3 IAPs)
V Tigra (Fantastic Forces)**** 54 (7 IXPs, 3 IAPs)
V Moon Knight (Avengers) 38 (16 IXPs, 1 IAP)
V Mockingbird (Sinister)*** 34 (13 IXPs, 2 IAPs)
U Sersi (Critical Mass)# 76 (22 IXPs, 0 IAPs)
R Vision (Supernova) 65 (19 IXPs, 1 IAP)
R Wasp (Infinity Challenge) 24 (7 IXPs, 0 IAPs)

Team: 266 TXPs, 0 TAPs

upgrades:

- I would like to upgrade Iron Man to the Veteran iteration from Xplosion (189 points - even though i might never play it), which costs Iron Man 1 IXP and the team 1 TXP.
- I would like to upgrade Tigra to the Experienced iteration from the Chaos War set (57 points, her current maximum limit), which costs Tigra 3 IXPs and the team 3 TXPs.
- I would like to upgrade Wasp to the Experienced iteration from Infinity Challenge (33 points), which costs Wasp all of her 7 IXPs and the team 7 TXPs.

Accordingly:

(West Coast) Avengers
V Iron Man (Xplosion) 189 (8 IXPs, 1 IAP)
V Wonder Man (Mutant Mayhem)## 132 (44 IXPs, 3 IAPs)
V Hawkeye (Fantastic Forces)* 84 (15 IXPs, 0 IAPs)
V Scarlet Witch (Fantastic Forces)** 62 (17 IXPs, 1 IAP)
R Giant Man (Hank Pym) (Avengers) 82 (20 IXPs, 3 IAPs)
E Tigra (Chaos War)**** 57 (4 IXPs, 3 IAPs)
V Moon Knight (Avengers) 38 (16 IXPs, 1 IAP)
V Mockingbird (Sinister)*** 34 (13 IXPs, 2 IAPs)
U Sersi (Critical Mass)# 76 (22 IXPs, 0 IAPs)
R Vision (Supernova) 65 (19 IXPs, 1 IAP)
E Wasp (Infinity Challenge) 33 (0 IXPs, 0 IAPs)

Team: 255 TXPs, 0 TAPs

* with Trick Shot feat 20
** with Armor Piercing 10
*** with Vault feat 3
**** with Sneak feat 5
# with Life Model Decoy 12
## with Hold The Line 4

This brings the point total for all of the maximum-version iterations to 850 points. My squad total remains at 475 points (850 / 2 = 425 + 50 = 475).

I hope this finds the approval of the editor(s).